Cork-wiring machine



(No Model.) 3 Shets-Sheet 1. B. MERRITT.

CORK WIRING MACHINE. No. 451,062. PatentedApr. 28, 1891.

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- B. MERRITT.

CORK WIRING MACHINE.

No. 451,062. Patented Apr. 28,1891.

(No Model.) 3 sheetssheet s.

B. MBRRITT..

GORK WIRING MAGHINE.

No. 451,062. Y. Patented Apr. 28, 1891-.

Zbz'ZW/esses I Y faz/waff?" mi Nnnms versus cui. vnofoqrmo., wnsmuavon, n. c.

UNITED STATES ATENT rnicn.

BENJAMIN MERRIT'I, OF NEVTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

CORK-WIRING ivAG'ilNE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 451,062, dated April 28, 1891.

Application filed .Tune 23, 1890.

To all wwm/ it ntay concern:

Be it known that I, BENJAMIN MERRITT, of Newton, county of Middlesex, State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Machines for )Viring Oorks, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like letters and figures on the drawings representing like parts.

This linvention has for its object to construct a machine for wiring corks, it being especially designed to drive or force a wire through a cork longitudinally and to bend it overatone or both ends to form hooks thereon.

In accordance with the object of this invention a suitable feeding device is employed to feeda definite length of wire forward from a continuous coil at each time the feeding device is operated. A cutting-off device is provided for cutting off the wire at regular intervals. A holder or receiver is provided to hold the corks in suitable position to permit the wire to be driven through them, said holder being preferably intermittingly movable, and suitable means are provided for discharging the wired corks.

An especial feature of my invention is the particular means I employ for bending over the ends of the wire and for shortening the distance between the bending devices after the wire has been bent, so as to enable the wired cork to be easily discharged from the machine.

Figure 1 shows in plan view a machine for wiring corks embodying my invention. Fig. 2 shows a side elevation of the machine shown in Fig. l, the crank being removed. Fig. 3

is a detail of the cork-holder. Fig-iis a separate detail of the pawl and pawl-carrier for rotating the cork-holder. Fig. 5 is a view showing the wired cork, and Fig. (i is a detail showing the centering device for the corkholder.

The main drive shaft a has on it a suitable crank b, or it may be a drive-pulley of any suitable construction. A drive-gear a is also secured to the main drive-shaft a, it being herein represented as a mutilated gear having teeth for about one-half of its circumference. The mutilated gear a meshes with a pinion a2, secured to a shaft as, having its bearings in the main frame-work. The shaft Serial No. 356,336. (No model.)

ai has on it a pinion a4, (see dotted lines, Fig. 2,) which engages a pinion a5 on a shaft a, arranged above and parallel with the shaft as. Each shaft a3 o. is supplied with a feedroll a7, of any usual or suitable construction, adapted and arranged to grip and'feed forward the wire w, which may be taken from any suitable reel arranged for the purpose.

The wire w as it is fed forward by the feedrolls a7 passes through a hole in a block as, (see dotted lines, Fig. 1,) mounted in an upright or stand a9 and held in place by a setscrew am. The cutting-off device for the wire, which, as above stated, is delivered from a reel, consists of a cutter or knife h', attached to a block or carrier b2, mounted on the stand or support a and movable vertically, by means to be hereinafterdescribed,in such a mannerthat the cutter or knife h passes across the delivery end of the guide-block as and severs the wire thereat. A lever h3 is pivoted to the main frame atb, one arm of which engages or co-operates with the vertically-movable cutter-carrier b2, and the other arm of which carries a friction-roller b5, which bears on the main shaft a or a suitable hub thereon, and a cam or projection o (see dotted lines, Fig. 2) is arranged on said drive-shaft a in. such relation to the friction-roller as to engage itonce during each rotation of the drive-shaft and thereby move the lever b3 on its pivot. Vhen the lever is moved by the projection h6, the cutter-carrier b2 is moved down to sever the wire, and when the projection b passes by the friction-roller b5 the spring 117 acts to restore the cutter-carrier b2 to its normal'position.

As the wire is fed forward by the feeding devices it passes through the guide-block as, as described, and continues througha groove or passage c, formed in the hub c,liixed to and movable with the cork-holder c2, said hub and cork-holder being mounted in suitable bearings to rotate on an axis at right angles to the axis of rotation of the feed-rolls.

The cork-holder is herein represented as a block c2, having` several recesses c3, three being herein shown,and in proper line with the longitudinal center ofeach recess, the hub c has formed in it the groove c, so that as the cork-holder is rotated to present one or another recess containing a cork in proper position to have the wire driven through it the IOO groove will occupy a position immediately above the flat-surfaced trame, and thereby present the guidegrooves above referred to for the passage and proper guidance of the As the wire is passed through the the machine to direct the wire properly if it should swerve after leaving the cork.

The toothed portion ofthe drive-wheel a is sufficient to rotate the feed-rolls a number of revolutions and to carry the wire forward through the cork contained in the corkholder, and as soon as the wire has been thus driven the projection b acts on and moves the lever b3 and severs the wire.

Itis desired to bend up or turn over the ends of the wire to form loops thereon, and I have herein represented two bending devices, one for each end of the wire, they con- G and 7, mounted in suitable bearings in the framework. The drive-pinion n. has on it a stud l2, which during each revolution strikes the end of the rack-bar 10 and moves itin the direction of the arrow thereon to turn the pinions 8 and i) a partial revolution, and as soon as said stud l2 has passed out of the plane of the rack-bar a coiled spring 13, which is arranged on one of the shafts, as '7, and which is wound up as the rack-bar 10 is nioved in the direction of the arrow, recoils and turns the shaft 7 in the opposite direction, which by means of the pinion 9 moves the rack-bar 10 and the pinion S back to their normal position.

once during each revolution of the drive-pulley a', and hence itis, as herein represented, during that part of the movement of said drive-pinion when the toothless portion on its circumferenceis passing by and not engaging the feeding devices that the wire may be held stationary when the bending` devices operate.

For reasons to be hereinafter set forth the lower pin 3 of the bending device 2 3 and the upper pin et of the bending device 4 5 are arranged eccentric to the axis of rotation of their respective shafts, one above and the l other below the center, and the pins 2 and 5 are arranged eccentrically above and below the pins and 4, respectively, and as the shafts 6 and 7 are reciproeated in the direc` tion of the arrows thereon the pins 2 5 will act upon the wire and turn it over the pins 3 4. turned in opposite directions.

If it is desired to turn one end over more than the other, one of the shafts will be turned a greater number of degrees than the other,

Thus the ends of the wire are over` and hence one of the pinions S or il will be made a little larger for the accomplishment et' this purpose.

As the ends of the wires are turned over the tendency is for the wire to cling to the pin in such a way as to necessitate the removal by hand, and hence I have herein shown the pins 3 4: with relative eccentricity, so that as the shafts 6 7 are turned in the rection opposite to the arrows thereon the distance between the pins 3 4 is shortened, and the wire will fall or may be readily removed.

lt will be herein understood that while `.l have shown two bending devices, one foreach end of the wire, it is obvious that one only may be employed, and, furthermore, that while I employ two eccentrcs one only may be employed.

The cork-holder c2, which is mounted upon bearings in the frame or support d, is turned a short distancey during each movement or action of the machine to present the next cork to the wire which is to be fed forward, and as itis thus turned the ends of the wire which project from each end of the cork will strike the underside of the frame d, and will theresistlng each of a fork comprising two tines 2 j 3 and 4 5, Fig. 2, fixed to shortshafts or studs by remove the cork from the cork-holder c2.

The base-plate of the machine will be provided at a point beneath the corkholder with a suitable opening (not shown) to allow the wired corks to pass through.

The means herein shown for rotating the cork-holder r2 intermittingly consists of a pawl e, pressed into contact with the hub e l by means of a spring cx, said pawl being attached to a pawl-carrier e, looselyconnected by a link c2 with a rocker-arm e3, pivoted at e* to the main frame and having its outer end upwardly extended, as at e5, which upwardlyextended end e5 is struck by a projection es, secured to the drive-shaft d, once during each revolution thereof, and when thus moved will Hence it will be seen that the forked bending devices are reciprocated lift the pawl-carrier, and its pawl e will engage a tooth on the hub c and move it forward, as herein represented, one-third of a revolution, the tooth, as herein shown, being one of the two ribs which constitute the groove c. The rocker-arm e3 has also a shoulder e7, which is struck by the projection e just as the main shaft a completes its revolution to restore the rocker-arm c3 to its normal position, so that the pawl e mayengage the next tooth on the hub c'. Thus it will be seen that at each revolution of the drive-shaft the corkholder will be rotated to present the neXt recess in line with the guide-holes.

Vlhe support rl for the cork-holder has attached to it a short chute dx, into which the corks may be placed, and as the recesses c3 in the cork are necessarily'open for the entrance and delivery of the corks a large fiat springacting plate f is attached to the support d, which will support the eorks in a yielding manner when in position to receive the wire.

l do not desire to limit my invention in all respects to the particular details of construction herein shown, as many of them may be IOC ITO

materially changed and accomplish the same functions as herein described, which details, I deem, come within the spirit and scope of this invention.

A spring-acting or spring-actuated plate 50 is attached to the supporting-frame d of the rotatable cork-holder c2, it having a projection on its end which enters one or another hole or slot C20 to hold the cork-holder in a position of rest to properly present the corks to allow the wire to be driven through them, said plate 50 thereby constituting a centering device.

I claiml. In a machine for wiring corks, a corkholder, means for feeding the wire forward, and a cutter, combined with a bending device for the end of the wire, consisting of a short shaft and two pins, both of which are arranged eccentric to the axis of rotation of the shaft, substantially as described.

2. In a machine for wiring corks, a corkholder, means for feeding the wire forward, and a cutter, combined with two bending devices, one for each end of the wire, one of which consists of a short shaft and two pins thereon, one of which pins is arranged eccentric to the axis of rotation of the shaft and the other of which consists of a short shaft and two pins thereon, both of which pins are arranged eccentric to the axis of rotation of the shaft, substantially as described.

3. In a machine for wiring corks, the corkholder and means for moving it intermittingly, combined with a frame which is struck by the projecting ends of the Wire to discharge the cork from its holder, substantially as described.

4. In a machine for wiring corks, a corkholder having grooves c, formed by two parallel ribs, combined Witha pawl engaging one of the ribs, a pawl-carrier, and means for moving it, substantially as described.

5. In a machine for wiring corks, the combination, substantially as described, of a oorkholder movable to present the corks successively in position to be pierced by the wire and means Lfor feeding the wire forward, driving it through the cork, and cutting it off.

G. In a machine for wiring corks, a rotatable cork-holder having recesses for receiving the corks and in line therewith having grooves c, each formed by two parallel ribs, combined with a stationary flat-surface frame with which said ribs co-operate to form a recess for the passage of the wire, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witn esses.

BENJAMIN MERRITT.V

Witnesses:

BERNICE J. Novas, EMMA J. BENNETT. 

